Weight Loss Over 40 Plus

Friday, July 27, 2007

Do you ever wonder why every diet you try fails? It's because they target the wrong problem. Diets focus on treating a symptom (weight gain) rather than providing what your body needs to naturally maintain its weight. What happens next? Yep! You lose weight temporarily only to gain it back again later. Is it lack of will power? No! Have you heard the phrase "it's all in your head?". Well, there's much truth to that. Overeating is a result of a lack of neurotransmitters in the brain. When the neurotransmitters are missing (when there is an imbalance), your body tries to replace them with something else...food.

Usually the problem is that we don't eat the right foods to bring up the levels of neurotransmitters to the point where we don't end up overeating.

Most people trying to lose weight go on some type of diet program but very often DO NOT stay with a diet because the stress they experience trying to stay on the diet, is too much for them to handle. Why is that?

The body gets most of the nutrients the manufacturing cells need to keep the opiod (neurotransmitter) levels normal in foods such as milk, cheese and other dairy products. Since we often eliminate these types of food when we diet, so we can lose weight, we are also eliminating the very foods our bodies MUST HAVE to keep the stress cycle from starting.

What you have is a viscious cycle of your body craving certain foods and you depriving your body of those foods.

Certain amino acids provide nutrients, lost by depriving yourself of those foods, that aid in restoring normal nutritional balances in the brain. Which in turn can prevent you from overeating in the first place. Without getting too "scientific", here are a few of the essential amino acids that aid in losing weight.

l-phenylalanine is an amino acid used by the body to synthesize dopamine and norepinephrine.

d-phenylalanine increases the levels of endorphins and enkephalins.

l-tyrosine and l-glutamine are amino acids used by the body to synthesize dopamine and Gamma Amino Butyric Acid (GABA), respectively.

l-arginine and l-ornithine facilitate production of muscle, not fat.

l-carnitine helps mobilize surface fats.

Chromium helps to lessen the competition of these specific amino acids to cross the blood brain barrier and is also thought to enhance the action of insulin which facilitates glucose (blood sugar) and amino acids into muscle tissue.

These, along with other vitamins and minerals, conveniently deal with the deficiencies resulting from poor eating habits or inadequate diet. By giving your brain what it needs, you will NOT need to go on some insane diet that may do more harm than good.

Therefore...Stuff your brain, not your face!

Jay Villaverde is the owner of All Natural Alternatives. A website dedicated to finding all natural alternative ways of improving your life without drugs, side affects or expensive therapy. For free articles, tips, advice and supplements, visit his site at: www.AllNaturalAlternatives.com

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